Tuesday, June 28, 2016

It is an unfortunate reality, that many rape victims do not come forward to authorities about the tragedy they have experienced. There are a number of reasons why the victims of sexual assault choose to be mute about what befell them, but some of the most common reasons are shame, guilt and the fact that sex crimes are extremely difficult to prove. Offenders are often acquitted or receive light sentences, scantily matching the crime.

A couple weeks ago, we wrote about the case of Brock Turner, a former Stanford University swimmer who was given an extremely light sentence for the sexual assault of a fellow student. After being found guilty of three felony charges, the presiding Judge Aaron Persky gave Brock six months in jail and three-years of probation. As to be expected, millions of Americans were left scratching their heads, some of which were calling for a judicial review.

As we talked about previously, the reason behind the “slap on the wrist” rested on a loophole in how California defines rape. This prompted emergency legislation to be put forward, broadening the scope of rape. Last week, Assembly Bill 2888, was introduced by Democratic Assemblymen Evan Low and Bill Dodd and co-sponsored by Democratic State Senator Jerry Hill (supported by Santa Clara County's District Attorney Jeff Rosen), which would place a mandatory minimum sentence of three years for similar crimes in the future, NBC News reports.

"We need to change the law to protect the next Emily Doe from the next Brock Turner," said Rosen. "Let's give the next campus sexual assault victim no reason to fear that her attacker will end up walking around free after spending less time in jail than it takes to finish a single college semester."